1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to side impact airbag systems.
2. Background Art
Side impact airbag systems have been developed to protect vehicle occupants in the event of a side impact.
Seat mounted side impact airbags are widely used to protect the upper and lower body of a vehicle occupant during a side impact incident. Seat mounted side impact airbags may not properly deploy into the gap between the occupant and door trim if the gap between the door and the occupant is closing too fast during an impact.
Door mounted side impact airbags have also been developed to protect vehicle occupants in a single row of a vehicle. Separate airbags must be provided for each door to protect occupants in multiple rows. Additional costs are incurred to provide separate airbags for occupants in each row of a vehicle.
The present invention is directed to solving the above problems as summarized below.